Killing in the Name Of
by Without Fear
Summary: It’s been two years since Rin disappeared and an emotionally tired Kakashi, ANBU captain, leads teams of ninjas to crush a rebellion in a remote province of Fire Country. KAKARIN
1. Iyokan

**Killing in the Name Of**

**Without Fear

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**Summary**: It's been two years since Rin disappeared and a hallow Kakashi, ANBU captain, leads teams of ninjas to crush a rebellion in remote provinces of Fire Country. There, he is tested not just as ninja, but as a leader, a friend, a lover, an idealist, and a human being.

**Disclaimer:** 'nuff said.

**Rating**: PG-13; Swearing, gore, violence…and a bit o' made up ninja politics.

**Genre:** Action/Drama/Romance/Angst/Whatever comes up

**Pairing:** Tentatively KakaRin. Slowly developed romance. NOT romance centered. Like life is not romance centered, but…romance just comes sometimes

**Pre Chapter Author's Notes:**

1. To distract me from the other story because the other gets me stressed out a bit since it's a long plot.

2. WARNING: This story is loaded with original characters. Seriously, if you hate original characters indiscriminately, don't read this. Kakashi and Rin are the main players, but there is big dose of OCs.

3. Title was ripped of a song. Bad me. Can you name the artist?

4. Thanks for continuing to read. Please give this story a chance.

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"_You're keeping in step  
In the line  
Got your chin held high and you feel just fine  
Because you do  
What you're told  
But inside your heart it is black _

_And it's hollow _

_And it's cold."_

_- "The Hand That Feeds", __**Nine Inch Nails****

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**Chapter 1: Iyokan**

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Rin disappeared two years ago on a mission to these parts. Something about that made Kakashi eager to take this mission although he had the choice not to. He usually didn't like to get embroil in affairs that was caused by pure politics, but this was different. He couldn't quite pinpoint it why it was different, but it was.

But Rin disappeared in these parts. The memory of her spirit, of her name, made Kakashi's heart tremble uncharacteristically. She was the last of his closest friends. She was supposed to be the friend that he would muse about the past with, and cry over the bodies of their comrades. She was supposed to the person who was left alive to tell their tales to the next generation, and to nurture the villagers and the future. But she was gone first. This was not fair.

"_Rin, why are you going on a mission?" a mask less Kakashi asked, frowning, "You've already gotten a residency at the hospital." The addressed, a smiling brunette with two rectangular marks on her cheeks, only laughed. She was a very comely young woman, though nothing about her was superfluous but there was a sense of gentle dignity around her and soft glow of kindness. A rarity among the dark, hardened ninja world, a place Kakashi embodied._

"_It's something personal," Rin replied, almost reluctantly._

"_Missions shouldn't be personal—"_

"_I know," Rin interrupted, a little impatient, "But it's something I want to do."_

There was no reason to talk her out of it, and he regretted that. And he never found out the "personal" aspect of her mission. Was that the reason she had disappeared?

She disappeared in the turmoil that was overtaking this province. She had reportedly died between the violent scuffles of the province's pseudo-ninja militia and the blood thirsty rebels. In a way, this was revenge.

So when he arrived in the province of Iyoken early in the morning, he wondered if Rin also witnessed the natural wonder of the mother earth rising with the sleepy rays of the sun. There was that familiar in his stomach and a surge of emotion which he suppressed instantly. Kakashi stood observing the province momentarily and took a deep breath, but only managed to get to muffled and stale air from underneath his ANBU mask. He grunted and shook away his mourning thoughts. He signaled to his men, 20-strong, mix of ANBUS, jounins and the chuunin, to continue moving. He had to talk to the region's lord, and scout the province for information on the rebels.

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Hatake Kakashi was not sure he liked this man, this regional lord of Iyokan, Kurame Nobu, an underling of the Naganishi-dono. First off, the man spat when he talked and talked while he ate. He was usually free to speak to while he ate, which subjected Kakashi to the disgusting sight of Kurame-sama spitting food while he talked--and the man talked a lot. Kakashi held his breath to prevent himself from releasing a disgusted sigh and was thankful for his dog-mask that hid his disapproving face. 

Secondly, it just seems so uncomfortable to be Kurame-sama, a man who could easily defeat Kakashi by just sitting on him. He was, plainly speaking, a pig—no a hog, a pig was more elegant than Kurame-sama. His breathing was heavy, rough and labored and he sat leaned onto his purple couch, his small slit-like eyes hidden by his heavy eyebrows. Every little movement tired him and breathing seemed as much of a workout to Kurame-sama as jogging was to a normal person. _The life of sedentary nobleman_, Kakashi mused grimly, _I wonder when he'll die of a stroke or a heart attack._ In his 21 years of life he had never wanted a noble civilian to die as much as he wanted this one to just because he was such an eyesore. If looks could kill, Kakashi would be dead. Thank god for logic.

"You—ninja," Kurame-sama started with his rough voice, "You better do your job well. I'm paying a considerable sum for you and your ninja friends." The third reason Kakashi didn't like him was because the man had little respect towards ninjas and often spoke to Kakashi like he was a house servant. Kakashi was not a _house_ servant; he was a soldier-servant in anything.

"We will," Kakashi answered, bored, "We are the best of the best of Konoha ninjas."

"Good," Kurame-sama gasped back, "What should I call you?"

"Dog," Kakashi answered promptly.

"_Dog_," Kurame-sama echoed with a lurch of one heavy eyebrow, allowing Kakashi to glimpse the lord's eye, "What kind of name is that?"

"It's what I am called," Kakashi answered, rigidly, "With this mask, we have no name."

"I see," Kurame-sama grunted with a dismissive wave of his pudgy hand, "Alright, _Dog_. Do what you have to do. Just get rid of them."

"Of course, Kurame-sama," Kakashi nodded, "My teams have already started." He bowed and left the room.

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Two ANBU teams and three teams of regular, but top notch ninjas of both jounin and chuunin ranks were employed under Hatake Kakashi. Kurame-sama was skeptical that only twenty ninjas could stop entire armies of violent anarchists and bloodthirsty guerrillas who sought to undermine the peace of province and the lords of the Fire Nation. Kakashi could have snorted. 

"These people have no honor," Kurame-sama had warned Kakashi, "They'll kill you when your back is turned."

Kakashi simply replied, "We're not so different."

"Hmm. I've employed hundreds of mercenaries," Kurame-sama continued, "All of them defeated by the rebels. My militia, ninja-trained, cannot contain them."

"We are elite of the ninjas," Kakashi had replied, calmly, "Not cheap mercenaries or pseudo-ninjas."

Strength was not in the number of men, but in the quality of each individual person that is put out on the battlefield. Kakashi was well versed in the importance of one able ninja in the battlefield, often having witnessed his sensei, Namikaze Minato—the late Hokage, take out dozens of enemy factions by himself. His heart fell slightly at the memory of the Yondaime. _Let him rest in peace, wherever he is._

"Our enemy here is number," Kakashi told his teams, "They are not skilled fighters, but skilled enough to best hundreds of mercenaries and at least high level genins." ANBU masks and focused faces nodded at him.

"We will wait for them to strike first," Kakashi continued, "Kurame-sama has no useful information about these people. We will have to gather ourselves. All we know is that they attack surplus warehouses, state-owned farms, the government-related buildings. There also have been incidents of private households and farms being attacked." He passed his eyes over the ninjas quickly, nodding. "Although they are targeting the government, it does not seem there is a real discernable pattern in their attacks. Keep your eyes opened and your ears alert. Rebels may look like civilians. In fact, most of them probably are civilians. Are there any questions?" No one raised their voice and Kakashi nodded, satisfied. "Alright, move out."

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**End of Chapter // Notes**

1. Thanks for reading. :3 Please give it a chance.

2. Initial short chapter. Later chapters much longer.

3. Reviews, critique, comments—all accepted Thank you very much:3


	2. Crack

A/N: Hm…it's been a while. Thank you for the reviews. My comp crashed and all my stuff was lost and I couldn't bring myself to write more. But...I tried again. Thank you for reading.

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**Chapter 2: Crack**

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Eight ANBUs and 12 of Konoha's elites were deployed, yet there was no progress. How could hundred of amateur rebels escape the radar of these exceptional shinobis?

Kakashi fought long and hard with this question, disappointed at the lack of progress of the last two days. There was not a single bit about a rebel. Not even hair of a whisper from the civilians. There were no attacks or signs of tension. It was as if they didn't even exist. His first two days in Iyokan had been strangely and disturbingly peaceful. Kakashi knew this was a good thing, but intuition told him that there was something to this about "peace".

The sun was going down on the second day, and Kakashi, disgruntled, resolved to investigate again making rounds in the main village market. Although he had done that several times in the time he was there, he had found nothing but oranges, meat, fish, fresh vegetables, and trivial gossip. He could not think why today would be different, but he had to give it time. They had been not here long—something had to come up soon. These rebels can't be non-existent ghosts.

He left the Tower, a smell gray government building given to him as a base by the Lord. It was located far from the central and busy parts of town, and, from the outside looked, was made to look like a dilapidated post office. Several protective seal was put around the building to warn them of any visitors, wanted or not. Kakashi made sure his disguise was blissfully normal—a dark haired, average looking young man in a plain yukata. Yes---very normal, very rural and traditional.

He began his stroll in the downtown village market of Iyokan. It was everything he had read about a country market—fresh fruits and vegetables straight from the farms, and the smell of the region's specialty, citruses, saturated the air with its sharp but pleasantly familiar scent. It was different from the musty, dusty smell of Konoha, where the two smells that pervaded his memory were that of blood and steel. He stopped in his track and watched with penetrating interest at the activities of the shops. The market was pleasantly busy with people rushing past him with their spouses and children, talking about what to make for dinner, talking about how their grandmothers were, how smart their kids are, how wonderful their farms were. Where were the hate, the dissent, and the negativity that would spawn a large rebel movement_? People in general seemed friendlier than they are in Konoha, and a lot more cheerful too. _This piqued his suspicion. There must be something he must be missing—things were too good. For a country wrought with fighting between "blood thirsty rebels and pseudo-ninja militias", it was amazingly stable and relaxed.

"You're in the way," a female voice chided from behind him. He looked around, muttering a sheepish apology while sidestepping out of the way. He met with the owner of the voice, whom he towered over by several heads, glaring at him with unmerciful onyx eyes. A girl who could be no older than fourteen or fifteen, with a disagreeably pouty face and two pigtails that failed miserably to reinforce her feminine youth and innocence.

"It's rude to block the pathway," she said sternly, "You must be new here."

Kakashi chuckled, "Excuse me, I let my mind wonder. I'm sorry."

"If you're unmindful, you'll let that pig in charge screw you over," she said harshly, "Unless you're working with that pig." She looked at him with slight disgust and walked past him, adding, "If you are, you better be even more careful."

Kakashi stared at her. Was that a threat? He reached out for her shoulder and pulled her back a little.

She whipped around, scowling, "What's the deal, jerk?!" _What a vicious little snake_, thought Kakashi with a mental snort. Several people turned their attention to them, whispering and pointing, but quickly went back on with their business when Kakashi smiled around to ensure that everything was alright. He turned his attention back on the teenager.

"Why should I be careful?" he demanded calmly, "What should I be afraid of if I worked for this 'pig' you speak of?"

Her scowl deepened. Kakashi thought teenage girls were cuter than this! This one was definitely vicious, and she wasn't even a shinobi!

She pursed her lips, and seems to be pondering how she would answer. Then, she shook her head and tried to shove off his hands off her shoulders. Kakashi slightly tightened the hold. He repeated the question with a friendly smile. This seemed to anger her even more.

She swung her fist at him but he easily caught it. Kakashi smiled even wider, "Feisty aren't you? Didn't your parents ever tell you that shouldn't hit strangers?" Many people were looking their way again, whispering worryingly to each other with faces crinkled with anxiety and even annoyance. Unlike last time, the atmosphere tensed. The mothers took their children and left in a hurry, muttering "Oh no, not again…" or "Let's get out of here, there might be…" The men were anxious and eyed the two of them with an expression of annoyance and fear. Kakashi took it all in with the fascination of a scientist. _The first sign of violence and everyone becomes really tense, _mused Kakashi_, interesting…._ So there is something underneath the peaceful and pleasant veneer he had observed before.

"Bastard, you work for that pig don't you!" she hissed angrily, "Let go of me!"

"Yes, I do, in a way. Seriously, though," Kakashi continued as he loosened his grip, "What I would be in danger of?" His interest, however, was in the subtle reactions of the citizens. The smooth surface was cracking.

"Burning in hell," she answered with so much venom in her voice that it caught Kakashi looked at her in alarm, "You ask why my parents didn't tell me anything?! It's because they can't! They're gone because of disgusting, greedy, low pathetic of excuse of a man like you! People like you will burn in hell!" She spat in his face, whipped around and ran away.

Kakashi calmly wiped his face with the sleeve of his yukata, inwardly smiling. Finally, he thought, something came up. The hatred was seething, the peaceful surface of Iyokan held an apprehensive population underneath. Apprehension can lead to fear, to hatred, and finally, to dissent. He wondered just how many people out there felt this way. If there was a considerably amount, then the rebels did exist somewhere, and she was probably knew something about them. He couldn't help thinking of her words "they're gone because of disgusting, greedy, low pathetic excuse of a man like you!" So, it was the little man versus the big man (literally). The haves versus the have-nots. The oppressed versus the dictator? He sighed. Politics wasn't his thing; his job was to follow the rules and do his duty, not to form opinions or sympathize with anyone, and he planned to stick to that.

He returned the gray Tower and gathered his men and women around him.

"I've made some progress," he announced to them, "I've got a _scent_."

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She ran back home, tears streaming out of her eyes. It wasn't out of sadness, but of pure anger and hatred. One of them approached her, and what she wouldn't give to beat him to pulp.

"Naoki!" a voice called as she entered a small, inconspicuous apartment at the end of the town. She stopped at entrance, breathing heavily.

"Kuroda-san," she said breathlessly, bowing slightly at the speaker.

"Where have you been?" Kuroda-san asked sternly, "Why were you running?"

"It's nothing," she answered quickly, "I just saw something unpleasant."

Kuroda-san came forward and put one hand on Naoki's head. He was several heads taller than Naoki, with a stern face and little eyes. He had a long jagged scar that ran over his left cheek and a permanently wrinkled forehead, despite the fact he was too young to have wrinkles.

"I was told that Kurame Nobu has hired teams of shinobis from Konohagakure," he stated grimly, "You better be careful. You know a Konoha shinobi should never be taken lightly."

"Of course," she answered, "What will they do, then, Kuroda-san?"

"It seems that they do not plan to fight the shinobis," Kuroda answered, turning back into the apartment.

Naoki followed, asking, "What will they do instead of fighting?"

"They will move to capture one of them," Kuroda replied, "And, that is all that they will say. But Naoki, do not get involved with the ninjas. Just do your job, and run if you meet a Konoha shinobi."

"Of course, Kuroda-san!"

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For someone like Kakashi, just a scent was immensely useful. With a team of ANBU, and his precious nin-dogs, Kakashi went on a more informed reconnaissance mission. First, he would observe the teenager, and find out any information from there.

Fortune seemed to be on his side when a messenger from Kurame Nobu alerted the seals around the Tower and came bursting into the building. He was an indiscrete little man with knobbly knees and graying hair. His long, official uniform of long, blue-gray kimono seemed to overtake his little frame. He was wheezing and coughing, his face flushed from the rush he had in getting to them it seemed. Kakashi waited patiently for him to calm down.

"West…" he said between huffs, "two or three mile…from…capital," more huffs and puff, but he didn't need to say more. The shinobi knew instantly.

Kakashi finished for him, "They've attacked?" The small man nodded vigorously. Kakashi made eye contact with his teams, and they nodded. He would take an ANBU team and three normal teams, and himself—and check this out. He didn't want to bring too many people because he didn't believe controlling these rebels would take too much, but he would bring enough men to put down a good side riot. This is was good enough.

Kakashi and his teams left and made their way to the site with haste. As they got closer, Kakashi could see small clouds smoke hovering over the trees, and he could smell dust and steel. At first, all he could see was a mob of people in front of an enormous warehouse. Smoke came from the warehouse—they had set it on fire.

The mob turned their attention to them as they arrived. Kakashi and his team rested on the trees and observed the crowd. They all had on masks, all simple and hastily made from pieces made or plastic with only eye holes for sight. Unlike their ANBU masks, the masks were blank and featureless. What struck Kakashi, however, was how they seemed to be expecting them. The mob seemed more excited than fearful, like they were expecting Kakashi and his team to respond.

Two kunais flew past Kakashi's face and struck the branch behind him. Kakashi looked around—where did that come from?! He looked down at the mob, searching to see if the thrower had been down there.

Suddenly, a large explosion from inside the warehouse blinded the entire area with a hot bright light. Kakashi instinctively protected his eyes with his hands, though all he could see was the intense light that seemed to make the day into night. He felt like he was staring at the sun. Out of nowhere, he felt a punch in his stomach which sent him flying back. The light disappeared as suddenly as it had come. The forest came into view, but was besotted with color translucent dots and lines. Even his sharingan seemed to be feeling the effect of the white light. But, the more important questions were: who the hell punched him? What kind of bomb or technique made that intense light?

First, he had to focus on who the hell punched him. How could anyone move in that light?

"He's over here!" he heard a voice say, "Keep the others busy!"

Kakashi stood up immediately and looked around. A net dropped on him from above and he poofed into a tree trunk. Kakashi swung around the branch of a tree and jumped onto the high branch he found for a more comprehensive vision. He looked for his team, who was busy fending off crude attacks of rocks, torches and knives from the mob. But something else was on his mind: the net. Were they trying to capture him? Was this a trap to capture them?

He jumped suddenly, and felt the rush of several senbons nearly missing his feet. _Shinobi tools._ He climbed onto a higher branch and looked for his attacker, his sharingan tomoe spinning ferociously as it scanned the area. He could sense their chakras---three bodies of well developed chakras. These were definitely trained shinobis.

More senbons flew out the trees, and Kakashi dodged them all easily. This was child's play. What were they planning to do? More senbons were thrown, mixed in with kunais and shurikuns, but he dodged them all easily. He could sense the three chakras circling him as they launched the weapons at him. The rain of senbons became denser as time went by, and one scraped his arm as he attempted to dodge a kunai. He shrugged off the slight pain and prepared for another round of senbons, but none came. Deeply suspicious, he scanned the area thoroughly again and decided to track them with his nin dogs. He brought his hands together to form a seal when suddenly noticed a weakness in the arm hit by the senbon. _Shit, it was poisoned._ He quickly grabbed his arm in a vain attempt to stop the poison from spreading, but he could feel his arm going numb. A leg swung at him from his right and he dodged by twirling aside, still holding on to numb arm. Suddenly, he felt the sharp pain of a senbon hit his back and something hot spreading down his spine. His back suddenly went stiff. His attackers jumped away from him and stood a good distance from him, watching. He looked at them, feeling the heaviness of eye lids and the sudden lost of control of his limbs. His consciousness was starting to fog, and in his drowsiness he noticed in the hand of one of his masked attackers was a not a senbon, but a syringe. _So…they injected him. Shit…this was what he got for overconfidence_. These weren't normal rebels. Then he lost it, and the last thing he knew was the smell of the earth rushing into his nostril as he fell. 


End file.
